The report focuses on
general anti-corruption policies, specialisation of law enforcement bodies
in fighting corruption, independence of the judiciary, immunity from
prosecution for corruption offences, the deprivation of benefits drawn from
corrupt acts, measures to counter corruption in public administration and
the prevention of legal persons - such as commercial companies - from being
used as shields for corruption. The report was drawn up by a team of GRECO
evaluators following a one week on-site visit to Turkey, during which the
team held thorough discussions with officials and civil society
representatives.

On the one hand,
information collected during the on-site visit indicates that Turkey has,
for a long time, been extensively affected by corruption and that the
problem appears to be widespread throughout the country and its public
institutions, including the judiciary. On the other hand, the Government of
Turkey has shown determination in its efforts to combat corruption which is
considered a priority in Turkey. Much has been done to improve the situation
in recent years, in particular, in view of the EU accession process. A large
number of fundamental laws have been enacted and their implementation is
underway. New institutions to promote access to public information and the
implementation of ethical principles in public administration have been
established.

GRECO addresses 21
recommendations to Turkey. They aim at improving the implementation of the
overall anti-corruption policies, strengthening the specialisation of, and
the co-operation between, law enforcement agencies and further enhancing the
independence of the judiciary. Moreover, it is recommended to consider
reforming the system of administrative investigation, which may be subject
to political influence, and to reduce the number of categories of public
officials who benefit from immunities. The report recommends that ethical
guidelines for public officials be implemented through thorough training
programmes, inter alia, concerning the reporting of corruption and the
protection of those who report suspicions of corruption (whistleblowers). It
is also recommended that an Ombudsman institution be established and that
the independence of recent bodies, such as the Ethics Council and the Board
of Review of Access to Information be strengthened.

GRECO will monitor the
implementation of the recommendations to Turkey towards the end of 2007,
through its specific compliance procedure.